Harvey Strother was a multimillionaire with a small empire of car dealerships, but when his mistress wheeled him into his lawyer's office to change his will one last time, he was a wine-soaked shell of his former self.
Less than a month from death, he was chugging a gallon and a half of wine each day, court records say. But his mistress, Anne Melican, contends he knew what he was doing when he changed his will in December 2003 to guarantee her about $6 million of his $37 million estate, including a condo in Cape Cod, Mass., and boat slip in Marco Island, Fla.
The last-minute changes are the focus of a fierce legal fight involving some of Georgia's most powerful attorneys. On Monday it landed before the Georgia Supreme Court for the second time.
A two-week trial in July 2008 satisfied no one. The jury sided with Melican on two of the three amendments and with Strother's family on the third. Both sides appealed, leading to Monday's return trip to the state's top court, where they sparred over the finer points of Georgia estate law.
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Millionaire's mistress battles his kin over estate
Less than a month from death, he was chugging a gallon and a half of wine each day, court records say. But his mistress, Anne Melican, contends he knew what he was doing when he changed his will in December 2003 to guarantee her about $6 million of his $37 million estate, including a condo in Cape Cod, Mass., and boat slip in Marco Island, Fla.
The last-minute changes are the focus of a fierce legal fight involving some of Georgia's most powerful attorneys. On Monday it landed before the Georgia Supreme Court for the second time.
A two-week trial in July 2008 satisfied no one. The jury sided with Melican on two of the three amendments and with Strother's family on the third. Both sides appealed, leading to Monday's return trip to the state's top court, where they sparred over the finer points of Georgia estate law.
Full Article and Source:
Millionaire's mistress battles his kin over estate
I hate to see this. The $6mil they're fighting over will end up in the lawyers' pockets.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking the same thing, Stand Up.
ReplyDeleteHow much is this fight costing? Who's paying all the attorney fees?
ReplyDeleteThe attorneys will keep this going until they've gotten what they came for in the first place.
ReplyDeleteWas he chugging wine a month before his death or did the court (and attorneys) paint that picture so they could discredit Anne Melican?
ReplyDelete